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Gordon Downie
|birth_place = Amherstview, Ontario | death_date = | origin = | instrument = Vocals, guitar | genre = Rock, alternative | occupation = Musician, actor | years_active = 1983–present | label = | associated_acts = The Tragically Hip, The Country of Miracles | website = http://www.wienerart.net/ | notable_instruments = }} Gordon Edgar Downie (February 6, 1964 - October 17, 2017) was a Canadian poet, singer/songwriter, rock musician, and occasional actor. Life Youth Downie was born in Amherstview, Ontario.Lake Ontario Waterkeeper He was the godson of former Boston Bruins general manager and coach Harry Sinden.Gord Downie - Biography Downie was a minor league hockey goalie, and played for an Ontario championship-winning Bantam level team in 1979. He attended Ernestown Secondary School in Odessa, Ontario, in grade 9 and part of grade 10. He graduated in 1982 from Kingston Collegiate and Vocational Institute, a school also attended by his band-mates. Downie then studied film at Queen's University in Kingston.Alumni Affairs Career Downie was the lead singer and lyricist for the Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip. He released 3 solo albums, Coke Machine Glow in 2001, Battle of the Nudes in 2003; and The Grand Bounce in 2010. Coke Machine Glow was sold along with a book of poetry of the same name, included with the CD. Canadian indie band The Dinner Is Ruined plus Julie Doiron and Josh Finlayson, called The Country of Miracles, served as his backing band for all 3 solo albums. Downie has cameo appearances in Men with Brooms, in which The Tragically Hip play a curling team. Downie also made a cameo appearance in the 2008 indie drama Nothing Really Matters, directed by Jean-Marc Piché. Downie also appears in the Trailer Park Boys movie The Big Dirty, in which he and Alex Lifeson play a pair of police officers. More recently, he and other members of the band can be seen in the final episode of Trailer Park Boys, entitled "Say Goodnight to the Bad Guys", in which he is harassed while eating a bologna sandwich at a singles dance. Downie is also featured in the sitcom Corner Gas in the episode "Rock On!" in which The Tragically Hip are shown as a local band practising in the main character's garage. Colin James is also featured in the same episode. Most recently, Downie appeared in Michael McGowan's film, One Week, as a pot-smoking philosopher alongside fellow Canadian Joshua Jackson. Downie worked with fellow Canadian band City and Colour to contribute vocals on the track "Sleeping Sickness" for their album, Bring Me Your Love. Downie was a trustee of Lake Ontario through his support of the Waterkeeper Alliance.Lake Ontario Waterkeeper - Trustees of Lake Ontario Death Downie died of glioblastoma on October 17, 2017, at the age of 53 in Toronto. The surviving members of The Tragically Hip made the news of his death public the next morning, by sharing an official statement from his family on their website. :Last night Gord quietly passed away with his beloved children and family close by. "Gord knew this day was coming – his response was to spend this precious time as he always had – making music, making memories and expressing deep gratitude to his family and friends for a life well lived, often sealing it with a kiss… on the lips.excerpt from a statement on the Tragically Hip website. Web, October 19, 2017. Writing Comparisons have been drawn between Downie and Michael Stipe of R.E.M. because both are known for writing intelligent, eclectic, and introspective lyrics, the meaning of which are often difficult to decipher, and also because they share similar performing styles.Sasquatch Music Festival 2006: one times one reviewGordon Downie: Coke Machine Glow - PopMatters Music ReviewGordon Downie - AOL Music Rambles: Gordon Downie, Battle of the Nudes Recognition In popular culture Downie is mentioned in the 2nd volume of the Scott Pilgrim series of graphic novels, Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World. In it, the title character and his friend listen to one of Downie's solo albums, and repeatedly describe him as "a genius". Publications Poetry *''Coke Machine Glow''. Toronto: Random House, 2001. Translated *Enrique Laso, The Taxidermist (translated with Valeria Lagos Terrizzano). San Francisco: Babelcube, 2015. Except where noted, bibliographical information courtesy WorldCat.Search results = au:Gordon Downie, WorldCat, OCLC Online Computer Library Center Inc. Web, Sep. 19, 2015. Audio / video Studio albums Compilations * Our Power (2006): "Figment (acoustic version)" See also *List of Canadian poets *List of English-language songwriters References External links ;Poems * Lyrics and Poems *Tragically Hip lyrics ;Audio / video *Gordon Downie at YouTube *Gordon Downie at Vimeo *The Tragically Hip at YouTube *The Tragically Hip at Vimeo ;Books *''Coke Machine Glow'' at Amazon.ca ;About *Gordon Downie, AMG AllMusic Guide. *"The cryptic world of Tragically Hip front man Gord Downie, Globe & Mail *Gord Downie Official website *Gord Downie Old website Category:1964 births Category:Canadian male singers Category:Canadian rock singers Category:Canadian songwriters Category:Canadian people of Scottish descent Category:Living people Category:Musicians from Ontario Category:Writers from Ontario Category:Queen's University alumni Category:People from Kingston, Ontario Category:The Tragically Hip members Category:21st-century poets Category:Canadian poets Category:English-language poets Category:Poets Category:Songwriters